Aberdeen Shrimper
The Man who sold the world
Cristiano Ronaldo has escaped unhurt after crashing his Ferrari sports car into a roadside barrier in a tunnel near Manchester airport. The car was badly damaged when it was involved in the accident at 10.20am today on the A538 Wilmslow Road, but the 23-year-old Manchester United winger was not injured.
Ronaldo was on his way to training when the accident occurred, but he later arrived at the ground and took part in the training session. His car crashed in the tunnel which takes traffic under the airport runways between Wilmslow and Hale, Cheshire. Witnesses said Ronaldo got out of the car and stood beside the wreckage, apparently not injured in the incident.
The car, registered in his home country of Portugal, is part of a fleet owned by Ronaldo. The Portuguese winger was spoken to at the scene by police investigating the incident. It is understood no other vehicles were involved but the aftermath of the crash was seen by a fellow United player.
The United goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar was travelling behind Ronaldo, at the wheel of his own Bentley, at the time of the accident. It is understood the players were making their way from their homes in Cheshire to United's Carrington training complex.
A witness described how the front edge of the sports car had been demolished while one of the front wheels had sheared off and could be seen 200 yards away from the scene. A rear tyre was flat. The witness said: "I got there just after the accident had happened and saw the state of the car. It is amazing he got out of it without a scratch."
A spokesman for Greater Manchester police said: "We are investigating a road traffic collision in the airport tunnel on the A538. It appears a Ferrari has collided with a barrier in the tunnel. Enquiries are continuing. The driver is being spoken to at the scene. It does not appear he has been injured."
United confirmed the incident had taken place and that the Ballon d'Or winner was unhurt. A club spokesman said: "He was involved in an incident this morning. No other cars were involved. He's fine and is training as normal with the team this morning."
